December 16 gang-rape: Final arguments to begin today

New Delhi: A court here will on Thursday begin hearing final arguments in the December 16, 2012 gang-rape case that had shaken the country.

On Wednesday, the court had concluded recording of the statements of the defence witnesses on behalf of accused Vinay Sharma, Akshay Thakur, Pawan Gupta and Mukesh.

The case relates to a 23-year-old intern physiotherapist who was brutally tortured and gang-raped in a moving bus by five men and a juvenile, after she boarded the vehicle with her male friend.

The juvenile is facing proceedings before a Juvenile Justice Board, while the four other accused are standing trial in the fast-track court. One of the accused allegedly committed suicide in Tihar Jail, where he was lodged.

Out of four adult accused facing trial in the case, Vinay in his statements had claimed that at the time of incident, he along with co-accused Pawan had gone to a music event in the DDA district park at Hauz Khas in south Delhi.

Another accused Akshay had said that a day prior to the incident he had left for his village in Bihar, and was not in the bus.

The claim of accused however was rejected by the prosecution witnesses.

Another accused Mukesh had said he was driving the bus in which the woman was sexually assaulted and her male friend was brutally attacked by his brother Ram Singh, Vinay, Pawan, Akshay and the juvenile.

The other three had refuted the submissions of Mukesh and had claimed innocence saying they were not in the bus.